Red
by PercyJacksonTheAwesome
Summary: Her hair is like a red flame, burning in the sunlight...Legolas, prince of Mirkwood, believes he is in love with Tauriel, friend and head of the Guard. But he believes she does not love him back. And things get even more complicated when the dwarves show up, and Legolas participates in the Battle of Five Armies. Emotionally driven story; lots of pain and heartbreak. (OC Tauriel)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hi guys! Some of you may remember me or might have read my Avengers fanfiction. Well, I decided I'd try my hand at Lord of the Rings (slash Hobbit). This is just the beginning (and more of a prologue), and it's not really that plot-based, more emotion-based. I'd like some constructive feedback, if you please; let me know what you think. I have no idea how often chapters will be, how long they'll be, or anything of the sort.  
Quick description: Legolas, our lovely elf prince, feels he may have a thing for Tauriel, his dear friend and Captain of the Mirkwood Guard. However, he fears she does not love him back, and his father disapproves. Things get even more complicated when the dwarves show up into his father's kingdom, and Legolas and Tauriel take part in the Battle of Five Armies. (and yes, things will get sad eventually)  
(NOTE: This will be in the LOTR section, so Tauriel will unfortunately not be a listed character.)  
(NOTE: I will also not be using any Elvish, since I don't know any, so bear with me)  
Let me know what you think!  
Thanks,  
~PJA**

Chapter 1

_Unknown date_

"Tauriel!"

Despite the sudden distraction, Tauriel did not falter. The arrow hit the bird straight on, between the eyes. Perfect shot.

She turned to face him. She gave him a look that was a mixture of confusion and slight annoyance. "What is it, Legolas?"

He loved the way his name rolled off her tongue. Not lingering too long on the _e_ like some did. It sounded just like the way his mother used to say it to him when she put him to bed at night.

"I hate to distract you from your practice," Legolas replied, "but my father requests your presence."

In her eyes he saw a flash of what he recognized as _not again_. "This is the third time this week your father has requested to speak with me." Light as a feather, and making no sound, she dropped from the rock she had perched on and came down to his level. "Does this not strike you as odd?"

"Perhaps." Now that he thought about it, it did seem odd. His father did not prefer to speak with anyone, if he could avoid it. Even if that person was Tauriel, Captain of the Guard.

"Think about it, Legolas." Tauriel began to pace. "More spiders have been frequenting this kingdom, threatening our lands. Your father speaks with me more and more. Do you not think something dark is approaching?"

Legolas loved it when she talked about the things she was passionate about. She got a certain glint in her eyes, a glow in her cheeks. She lit up, like a star.

"I think it could be a possibility," Legolas replied. "But we do not know anything for sure." Legolas held out his hand. "Come, Tauriel. My father awaits."

She did not take his hand, but she gave him a smile and set off toward the palace. She was faster than him, and quickly passed him. Her pace was silent, and the sun shone on her through the trees. With the sunshine caressing her, her hair looked like a bright flame. A fire blazing through the trees, touching everything in her path, never leaving them the same. Bright red, like her fierce heart, feisty and spontaneous attitude, and her fighting belief to do what she believed right.

She turned. "Why so slow, Legolas? Come on!" She began to run, her long red hair flowing behind her. The forest was her element; she had told him so many times. It was where she belonged; where she felt the most at home. Where she was the most happy.

All he wanted was for her to be happy.

* * *

"Good luck. My father can be a bit...stubborn."

Tauriel chuckled. "I can handle your father. I've faced worse." She paused for a moment. "Go back to your post, Legolas. They'll need you."

"Don't worry, I shall." He had no intention of going back to his post.

Tauriel said nothing more, and slipped into the adjacent room to meet with the king.

Legolas remained where he was.

* * *

The quiet of the halls. The whirring of his own thoughts. The soft creaking of a door opening.

"Legolas?"

Legolas glanced from his perch against the wall. "Tauriel."

"What are you doing here? You should be at your post."

"I waited for you."

Tauriel narrowed her eyes. "I do not need your protection, least of all from your_ father_, Legolas. Come. Let's go back to your post."

* * *

"Look at the stars, Legolas. Have you ever seen anything so beautiful?"

He tried his hardest to hold back his true feelings and instead said, "Yes, they're quite beautiful." Stars were the most beautiful thing in the Elven world. In the forest, they could see the stars from just about anywhere.

They were out in the forest, not fifteen minutes from the palace, lying in the grass. Tauriel wanted to look at the natural beauty of the stars. Legolas wanted to go with her.

"Do you remember when we were young, and we would run off into the night, chasing the stars?" Tauriel asked him, continuing to stare up at the sky. "It seems like such a silly thing. Chasing the stars."

"I also remember asking my father to go beyond the kingdom one day, and explore." Legolas chuckled. "Now _that's_ a silly thing."

This made her laugh. "Indeed." She sighed. "Running off into the woods, trying to hunt on our own. We were ambitious little elflings."

"Trying to hunt down orcs as small children." He meant it in a light tone, but when he looked at Tauriel, he saw that the smile had left her face, and the light momentarily faded from her eyes. He must have struck a nerve. Legolas wanted to smack himself. The fate of her parents had slipped from his mind.

"Hey. Don't think about that. There's nothing to be done now."

She didn't speak. "I guess you're right." For a moment, they lay there in silence, with nothing but the birds chirping around them to break it.

"I do wonder what is beyond the borders. I have always wanted to journey beyond the kingdom, explore the world outside. To live my life to the fullest, until the end of my days."

"You'll find out someday, Tauriel. I promise."


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Here's chapter 2! I don't know when the next update will be, but stay tuned! And sorry if these things seem out of character, I'm trying my best. But please review and tell me if you like it!  
~PJA**

Chapter 2

_Unknown date_

"You wished to see me, Ada?"

Chin held high, his father pivoted to face him, eyes slightly narrowed. "Yes. Come, Legolas."

Legolas shuffled farther into the room, trying his best to keep a collected physical demeanor. Although, with his father's tall, cool presence in the room, the feat was a bit harder than it should've been. He stopped in front of his father, hands clasped behind his back.

"Do you know why I called you here, son?" His father, the king Thranduil, began to pace slowly, in a circle around Legolas.

"No, Ada, I do not." His father, being taller than him, looked down on him, as if scrutinizing him.

"I have brought you here to discuss some of the...social aspects of your life."

Legolas furrowed his brow. "I am unsure of what you mean."

"You know of what I speak." His father spoke in the most condescending tone. "Do you deny that you have been spending more time with the girl, Tauriel?"

Legolas's palms began to sweat. "I do not deny it."

"And do you deny that you speak of her to me frequently?"

"I do not."

"So, you do not deny that you have begun to grow fond of her?"

"...I do not."

His father stopped circling him. "I thought so. And that is why I called you here today." He looked his son in the eyes. "I want this to stop."

"Pardon?"

"I want you to stop seeing her. I cannot allow this to go any further."

"Ada, you can't do that. What is so wrong about it?"

Thranduil's eyes narrowed. "She is a lowly Silvan elf. You are my son. The prince of this kingdom. And I expect you to act like such."

"But she is Captain of the Guard! A position which _you_ gave to her! Not to mention the fact that you have cared for her since she was small!"

"She is head of the Guard," his father snapped, "because she has the skills for the position. I will not discriminate in that regard. But that does not excuse her blood status. Nor does the fact that she was once under my care. I owed a debt to her parents. That is all. I will still not stand for this, Legolas. I expect more from you."

"You can't tell me what to do, Ada."

"I am the king!" Thranduil exploded. "And I am your _father_. You will do as I say." Legolas shook his head. "No. I have the right to feel whatever I feel. And you have no say in that." Legolas turned on his heel and went for the door.

"Legolas! Get back here! This discussion is _not over_!"

Legolas said nothing. He rounded the corner, his father's wrath fading behind him.

"Fine! Have it your way! Pursue her if you wish, but whatever you do, I will not allow it!"

Legolas could hear the subtext without his father having to say it.

_If she could ever love you in the first place._


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey guys! Just a heads up: you can follow me on tumblr: percyjacksontheawesome**

Chapter 3

_TA 2941_

Whistling through the trees was the wind. Howling, moaning, a chilling voice. A whisper.

"Do you hear it, Legolas?" Tauriel appeared at his side. She looked worried, her brow furrowed, features sharp.

"I hear nothing." His eyes fixed on the dark expanse of trees before him, trying desperately not to look at her and her bright hair.

"Exactly. That is what worries me. The silence." Besides the whispering of the wind, there was a distinct absence of sound. "No movement of creatures, no shaking of tree branches, no buzzing of insects. No birdsong. There is a great disturbance that worries me. Something is wrong."

Something had been wrong for the past however many years. Frequenting the woods had been more and more spiders. Huge, gargantuan, vicious creatures, who spun massive traps in the depths of Mirkwood. Tauriel had been right. Something dark was coming.

A sharp scream cut through the silence like a knife, ending abruptly with the sound of clicking and shuffling.

Legolas and Tauriel exchanged a grave glance. "Call the Guard," Legolas said.

Tauriel let off a cry, signaling the rest of the Guard. She and Legolas ran off into the woods, toward the sound, with the rest of the Guard close behind. As they weaved through the trees, they began to get tangled in sticky spiderwebs.

"Spiders!" Legolas shouted. Tauriel began to run faster, bow outstretched, passing him. She quickly outdistanced the rest of the Guard, out of their sight.

"I see them!" she shouted from up ahead. "Spiders, and many of them! Come quick!"

Legolas heard her load her bow and fire, followed by the high-pitched screech of a dying spider. He hurried his pace, out of the trees, into the semi-clearing filled with spiders, and…

Dwarves. What in the name of Valar were _dwarves _doing in Mirkwood?

He couldn't think about that at the moment. The spiders were the biggest concern. Besides, the dwarves were covered in spiderwebs, suggesting they had become susceptible to the spiders' deadly traps.

Legolas nocked an arrow and took out a spider. The arrow caught in the creature's head and brought it to the ground. Quick as lightning, he shot second one, soon followed by another falling behind him. He was glad to see his fellow Guard members doing the same as him, but he could not find Tauriel in the confusion. Where was she? Perhaps she'd gotten caught back behind them with a spider. Either way, he couldn't allow himself to worry about her. She could take care of herself.

But then he saw her. A flash of red behind him. She pounced on a spider, who was currently attacking one of the dwarves. She expertly took it down, stabbing it in the vital areas with her dual knives. Breathing heavily, she left her victim, sheathed her knives and approached the group. "That's the last of them."

"Good." Legolas analyzed the congregation of dwarves before them. "Search them."

The rest of the Guard did ask he said, patting down the dwarves and confiscating their weapons.

"Is this really necessary?" Tauriel whispered to him. "They were just attacked by spiders."

"They are trespassing in our lands," he replied. "By my father's command, they are to be searched and brought to him."

Tauriel's face hardened, her role of military leader coming back. "Alright."

From birth, Legolas had been taught by his father to hate dwarves. He knew it had something to do with his father's own past experiences and hatred, but he couldn't help but hate them nonetheless.

He approached the group of dwarves and began to search the red-headed one in front of him. He confiscated the axe the dwarf had on its back, along with multiple knives from its pockets. He also found something else the dwarf had on him. A locket.

"Hey! Give that back! That is private!" the dwarf snapped at him. Legolas looked at him with disgust. In defiance, he opened it up. Inside were depictions of two of the most hideous creatures he's ever laid eyes on.

"Who is this?" he asked, referring to the first picture. "Your brother?"

"_That _is my _wife_." The dwarf seemed to take offense. Legolas was surprised - he didn't think any dwarves bothered to get married, as stubborn as they were. He was beginning to doubt if there were any dwarf women to begin with.

A shudder running down his spine, he looked to the other picture, this one even uglier than the first. "And what is this horrid creature? A goblin mutant?" he asked.

"That's my wee lad, Gimli!"

A child. A dwarf-child. And what a wretched-sounding name. Well, it wasn't _too _wretched, now that he thought about it. No, no, he couldn't think like that. These dwarves were trespassers, and they had to be treated as such.

He was done searching this dwarf. He moved on to the next dwarf, this one taller and more held-together than the rest. He appeared to be the leader of this rag-tag group. When he began to search him, the dwarf gave him a dirty look. Legolas didn't expect to find much other than dwarven weapons, but he was taken aback when instead he found an Elvish blade on the dwarf.

Legolas held it up in front of his eyes. "This is made by my kin. From Gondolin." He marveled at its beauty, its craftsmanship, its shine. He had never seen a finer blade.

But how did the dwarf find it?

He narrowed his eyes. The dwarf must have stolen it from the rightful owner. Anger burned inside him.

Legolas pointed the tip of the sword at the dwarf's throat. "How did you come by this?" He glared at the dwarf.

The dwarf glared back. "It was given to me."

How dare he. "Not just a thief, but a liar as well." He pulled the sword away from the dwarf's throat, but he kept the sword. Then he ordered the Guard to take the dwarves to his father, and they began to manhandle and push the dwarves through the forest.

Legolas followed, still clutching the sword. He looked at Tauriel, expecting to see her approval of his actions. Instead, on her face, he saw a mix of emotions. Mostly it was her hard, steely military face, but it was mixed with something else. Intrigue. Her expression confused him. He had never seen it before, and he wanted to know the cause of it.

But right now, he needed to deal with the dwarves.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

_TA 2941_

Legolas supervised as the Dwarves were brought into the cells. The leader of the group had been taken to his father for questioning, while the others were to be kept here until further notice.

The guard in front of him grumbled. "This one's still got weapons," he muttered in Elvish. He removed a small sword from the Dwarf's coat and shoved him into a cell.

Legolas heard the sound of gates creaking shut ringing through his ears. It had been a long time since they'd had this many prisoners in the cells.

Then he saw something strange. Tauriel having a small conversation with one of the Dwarves.

"Aren't you going to search me? I could have anything down my trousers." Legolas picked up a hint of something in his voice that certainly wasn't just a question.

"Or nothing." Tauriel responded, shutting his cage door closed. The Dwarf stuck his head between the bars, longingly gazing at Tauriel as she walked away.

Legolas bristled. He didn't like this. He didn't like this at all. It seemed too much like banter to him.

"Why does the Dwarf stare at you, Tauriel?" Legolas asked her in Elvish so that the Dwarf would not overhear.

"Who can say?" she responded, back in Elvish. She suddenly got a strange look on her face, and would not meet Legolas's eyes. "He's quite tall for a Dwarf. Do you not think?"

"Taller than some…" Legolas responded, "but no less ugly."

If he didn't know better, he would have said that Tauriel rolled her eyes. "I have to meet with your father, Legolas. He wishes to speak to me after he talks with the Dwarf. But I suspect it shall be awhile."

"Then come join us in celebration, Tauriel. I know you weren't planning to, but you should come. Really."

"Perhaps I will."

But Legolas knew that tone of voice. She wasn't planning to.

.

The celebration was marvelous. All the greatest food in Mirkwood compiled into one room. The most beautiful music resonating against the walls. The chatter and laughter as the Elves celebrated.

Legolas had convinced Tauriel to come. He had to practically beg her. She probably would not have come otherwise. But she enjoyed herself; Legolas could see it. She talked, she laughed. Her eyes sparkled, her laugh rang like a soft bell. Her hair shined in the light of the halls. She was probably the most beautiful thing he had set his eyes on.

"Have you met with my father yet?" Legolas asked after she had recovered from someone's joke, genuinely curious.

Her eyes hardened. "Yes, I have."

"What did he have to say?"

"He asked for my report of today's patrol. He wasn't too happy about the reports of more spiders. And he wasn't willing to go beyond our borders to destroy them at the source." She pursed her lips, unwilling to say more on the subject.

But Legolas, naturally perceptive, knew that wasn't all. There was something else, something that she wasn't telling him. He wasn't going to pry her for the information.

"Here, have another ale." He passed another cup towards Tauriel and picked up one for himself. He raised it, in some form of a toast. "To the best Guard Captain I have ever known, who can drive spiders from the kingdom without a hair out of place, and can still be the greatest friend."

Seeming a bit reluctant, Tauriel clinked her ale to his and took a drink, a hesitant smile coming to her lips.

.

"Tauriel? Tauriel, where are you?"

He had turned away for one minute and she was gone. He pardoned himself from the group he was with and went off to go find her. But even though he searched the room, every nook and cranny, he could not find her. She was gone. She must have slipped away from the celebration.

He sighed. He should've known something like this would happen. Tauriel was a carefree Elf and loved the little things, but she was not one for parties.

Wherever she may be, Legolas decided to go find her, even if only to ask her why she left. He made sure no one was watching; everyone was too busy with their conversations and festivities to notice him slip out the door.

The halls of Mirkwood were eerily quiet. Muffled behind doors, the chatter and laughter penetrated the air. Legolas took a deep breath. Where would Tauriel go to be alone, to think? His first thought was outside, and she certainly would go there, were it not for the threat of more spiders. He would check outside if he could not find her inside.

First he went to her chambers. He felt strange heading there without invitation, as if he was invading her privacy. But he would knock. If she was there, she would understand.

But the door to her chambers was open, and she was not inside. Her room was pristine, neat, as if no one ever went inside. Tauriel was not very fond of staying inside. She preferred to be active, to be in nature. Even so, Legolas did not dare venture inside.

He passed by and rounded a corner, ducking into other rooms to check for her. Where could she be?

On his way toward the armory, he passed the cell block where the prisoners were being held. He didn't expect to hear much from them; it was past the point of anger and screaming; most of them were sulking. At least, that was what it was for prisoners in his experience.

But he heard something from the cells. Voices. Voices talking. At first he was simply confused, but then he heard a female voice and alarms went off in his head. There were no female Dwarves in the group they'd brought in. Someone else was in there with them, and he had a sinking feeling he knew who it was.

Footsteps not making any noise, he slunk into the cell block. As he approached, he could pick out individual words, and eventually he could hear the entire conversation. They were discussing stars. _Stars_.

He rounded the corner. It was as he feared. Tauriel, talking with the young dark-haired Dwarf who had been staring at her earlier. And they were talking about the stars. Legolas felt a pang. The stars were their thing.

Then he heard Tauriel chuckle. That's when it hit him. Not only were they talking to each other, they were flirting. Flirting. He could hear their tone; playful, intent on listening to what the other had to say.

Legolas felt his heart being stabbed a thousand times over.

.

He couldn't bear to stand there any longer. He listened to enough of their conversation to know that his heart was no longer in one piece; it was in two, or perhaps five or six. As quiet as he entered, he left, not wanting to deal with anything or anyone.

He needed to let off steam. He couldn't go back to the festivities; he was no longer in the mood, and he didn't want to have to explain himself to anyone. Instead, he went to the armory, picked up his bow, and slipped outside. Trudging through the leaves, he went looking for a target. Any moving thing would become his prey. He was deadly with a bow.

He saw movement. His keen eyes focused in on it. Stalking it, he advanced, bow outstretched, ready to take it down.

It moved again, coming closer. He stopped, still as a tree, readying himself for the right shot.

"Legolas."

He relaxed. It was only Tauriel. Possibly the last person he wanted to see right now.

"Tauriel."

"What is the matter? Why have you vanished off into the woods?"

Legolas did not feel obligated to answer. "Why did you follow me?"

"I was worried."

Legolas finally brought himself to look at her. "Why did you come looking for me?"

"I took a small break from the festivities, and when I went back I was told that you had left. So I figured you'd be here."

Legolas couldn't help but smile. "You know me well, Tauriel."

"Well enough to know when there is something wrong," Tauriel said. She took a step closer. "Tell me."

He felt conflicted. He didn't know what to say to her. He most certainly didn't want to reveal his true feelings, not at the current moment. "Why were you talking to that Dwarf?" He figured this was the safest question to ask.

A look of betrayal entered her eyes. "You followed me?"

"I saw you were gone, and I went to find you," Legolas answered. "Now answer me."

This time, it was Tauriel who would not meet Legolas's eyes. "The Dwarf intrigues me. He is sweet and kind, though reckless and arrogant. And he has plenty of stories to tell. Have you never wanted to learn about Dwarf culture, Legolas? It is so very different from ours, yet so interesting."

A stone settled in the pit of his stomach. No, he had never wanted to learn about Dwarf culture. He had never wanted to learn anything about Dwarves. Yet here he was.

His throat tightening, he noticed the gleam in Tauriel's eyes when she spoke of the Dwarf.

It was the same look his father's eyes got when he spoke of his mother.

Legolas smiled. He understood now.

There wasn't a thing he could do about it.

"Come, Tauriel," he said, trying his hardest to prevent his voice from cracking. "Let's head back. If we're out too long, they'll come looking for us."


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Hey there! Here's the update! Sorry it's taken so long, all my exams are coming up! Enjoy, don't know how much longer it'll be; love y'all!  
~PJA**

Chapter 5

_TA 2941_

_Later_

"The Dwarves!" One of the guards arrived, running and panting. "They've escaped!"

Legolas and Tauriel gave each other a look. All feelings were put aside. They entered military mode.

"Sound the alarm," Legolas told the guard, who nodded and ran back the way he came. Within seconds, he heard shouting, commotion, and bells ringing throughout the halls.

"I'll gather the Guard," Tauriel said. "We'll start to search for them."

Legolas nodded. Tauriel hurried off the other way. Legolas knew that if she was with the Guard, she would trust him to search by himself, to cover more ground. Legolas set off away from the cells. The likelihood of the Dwarves hanging around near their cells was at a minimum. The largest likelihood was that they'd get lost somewhere in the halls. They'd seen a minimal amount of the Halls of Mirkwood when they'd been brought in; they'd get lost sooner or later. They had to be in here somewhere.

First he checked the armory. Luckily, it appeared to be unchanged. So the Dwarves were without weapons of Mirkwood.

He froze. Did they think to get their own weapons back?

Legolas ran out of the armory and into the room near the cells where they'd stashed the Dwarves' weapons. His heart sunk when he saw that a few, but not all, were gone. However, the Elvish sword remained.

He thought of alerting Tauriel that the Dwarves were armed, but that wasn't as important as finding the Dwarves themselves. He began to search again, one hand on his dual knives. He opened countless closed doors and ducked down endless hallways, but no sign of the Dwarves. He hoped Tauriel and the Guard were having better luck.

He stopped in his tracks. Down the hallway was an open door. None of the doors he's passed so far had been open.

He tried to suppress his panic. Unsheathing one of his knives, he quickly descended the stairs, fearing what he'd find. He hit the bottom and turned the corner.

He found nothing.

And that was what worried him.

The barrels destined for Esgaroth were gone. He knew they were late and supposed to be sent back hours ago, but he also knew the ways of many of the Elves around here. There would be no one here amidst the celebration. Yet the barrels were gone.

Did they…?

...No, they couldn't have.

Nevertheless, he shot up the stairs, ran out the halls and found the river. He followed the river from the source under the Halls of Mirkwood and followed it down its banks until, up ahead, he saw them.

The barrels were floating down the currents of the river, each carrying a Dwarf inside.

He had to go alert Tauriel and the Guard. He turned a 360 and ducked into the halls. He didn't have time to run and find them, so as he zigzagged the halls, he shouted,

"I've found them! The Dwarves! In the river! Tauriel! Guard!"

He shouted this a number of times before he saw members of the Guard rushing past him out to the river. Soon Tauriel was there, and, without words, she followed him outside to the river. They and the Guard swung through the trees hugging the waterline, quickly gaining of the barrels.

"We'll catch them yet," Legolas said to Tauriel.

However, her eyes opened wide in alarm. "I think we have a bigger problem than catching them."

Legolas followed her line of sight. Yes, it was most definitely cause for alarm.

"Orcs!" he shouted, alerting other members of the Guard. Immediately their attention was drawn away from the Dwarves and to the Orcs.

"Take down the Orcs!" Tauriel shouted in Elvish. They obliged, shooting the Orcs with a volley of arrows. Legolas's gaze was drawn to the Dwarves for a second, and he noticed that they were using their weapons to fend off the Orcs as best they could from the water. He mentally applauded them for their efforts.

But he noticed they would soon be coming upon the gate in the river, with Orcs up at the lever pulling it shut. And as much as he hated the Dwarves and didn't want them to get away, he knew that dying in an Orc ambush was not a noble death. He would grant them that much. His morality overtook his motives.

Legolas fired an arrow at the Orcs on the opposite riverbank, sending a few falling into the water. Many went down, thanks to the Guard. Tauriel was going more hand-to-hand, not only using her bow but slitting their throats with her knife, as well. She aimed for the Orcs up at the lever, successfully putting an arrow through some of their skulls. Legolas saw the young dark-haired Dwarf jump out of his barrel and pull the lever open but not before getting shot in the leg by an arrow. Tauriel gasped.

Without thinking, Legolas shot an arrow at the source of the former shot, sending an Orc tumbling backwards. Turning back, he saw that the Dwarves were gone past the gate, the now-injured Dwarf apparently back in his barrel. The remaining Orcs followed them down the river. Legolas ran after them. "Come! We can get the last of them!" He felt Tauriel following him.

"What about the Dwarves, Legolas?" one of the Elves asked him.

Though it pained him greatly to say it, he told him, "Forget about them. Focus on the Orcs."

He could feel Tauriel's gaze staring into him; it felt like a proud one.

Trying not to think about it too much, he pursued the Orcs down the river, taking down the ones who were lagging behind the majority. Scoping out the river, he saw that it would be easiest if he managed somehow to get into the middle of the river, so he could get the Orcs on the other side. He put on a bit more speed and leapt into the middle of the river, landing on the head of a Dwarf. He balanced by putting his other foot on the Dwarf adjacent to the one he was currently standing on. Ignoring the grumbling from underneath him, he shot at the Orcs on the riverbank, using the heads to swivel and get nice angles to shoot from. Each splash was a sign that an Orc had gone down. He never looked long enough to see them fall; there were too many to focus on just one.

Soon he jumped to the nearest bank, landing on the back of an Orc. His knife was through its throat before it felt Legolas's weight. Legolas dropped down to the rocky cliffside beneath him, only to be attacked by yet another Orc. He didn't have the time or space to draw his bow, so he took his knives and sliced at the Orc. However, this particular Orc was more skilled at hand-to-hand combat, and it locked Legolas in a fight. He managed to get the upper hand and stick the Orc through the heart just as another Orc fell over dead behind him. Confused, he looked around. No Guard members were near, and the Orc had no arrows protruding from it. Upon closer inspection, he spotted an axe stuck in its skull.

He turned to the river, where he saw the faint outlines of the barrels as they floated away in the current. If what he thought had happened happened, then he owed them his life.

Owing his life to a Dwarf. He never thought he would face the day.

The trees behind him rustled. An Orc burst out, prepared to attack, but instead it was attacked by Tauriel, finally caught up to Legolas. She held her knife to its throat and looked up at Legolas, silently asking him for the word.

"No," he said. "Bring him to my father. He will be questioned."

Tauriel did not seem pleased. She head bloodlust in her eyes. Legolas grew concerned. This was not normal for her. But he had no time to worry about that now. He had to take the Orc to his father.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait! I will hopefully be updating more often now that school is out, but enjoy this next chapter!  
~PJA**

Chapter 6

_TA 2941_

Legolas and Tauriel returned to the Halls of Mirkwood, toting the Orc along behind them. Immediately Legolas requested for his father to be alerted and to be ready to interrogate the prisoner. When the two of them approached, Thranduil was waiting, standing tall and regal.

"What is this?" he asked.

"One of the Orcs who attacked us. Those who were not killed are currently pursuing the prisoners down the river. We took this one for questioning," Legolas replied, hauling the Orc to the center of the floor, holding him by the head and putting a knife to his throat. Tauriel stood to the side, attempting to stare daggers through the Orc's head.

"Then let the questioning begin." Thranduil gained composure and focused all his attention on the Orc. "Now, Orc. You foul, wretched thing. You have decided now is the time to attack my kingdom." He began to pace. "Such is the nature of evil. Out there in the vast ignorance of the world it festers and spreads. A shadow that grows in the dark. A sleepless malice as black as the oncoming wall of night. So it ever was. So will it always be. In time all foul things come forth."

Legolas tightened his grip on the blade. "You were tracking the company of thirteen Dwarves. Why?"

The Orc began to speak. "Not thirteen. Not anymore. The young one. The black-haired archer." The Orc seemed to be looking directly at Tauriel. "We stuck him with a Morgul shaft. The poison's in his blood. He'll be choking on it soon."

Tauriel appeared to be using all her willpower to keep her composure. "Answer the question, filth," she spat.

"I do not answer to dogs, She-Elf!" the Orc shouted in Black Speech.

This angered Tauriel. Legolas could see the flames in her eyes. She whipped out her knife, ready to strike.

"I would not antagonize her," Legolas said to the Orc.

"You like killing things, Orc?" Tauriel asked, almost taunting. "You like death? Then let me give it to you!" She struck out, aiming to stab the Orc in the throat.

"Enough!" Thranduil screamed. It was the only thing that stopped her from slicing off its head. "Tauriel, leave! Go now."

Reluctantly, and with her eyes still sharp, she left, her steps slow. She was full of anger. Legolas had never seen her this way before. He would talk to her about it later.

"I do not care about one dead Dwarf. Answer the question. You have nothing to fear. Tell us what you know and I will set you free." His father began to pace.

"You had orders to kill them. Why? What is Thorin Oakenshield to you?" Legolas was glad he had time to learn the true identity of the prisoners between their capture and escape.

"The dwarf runt will never be king," the Orc spat.

"King?" Legolas questioned, appalled. "There is no king under the mountain, nor will there ever be. None would dare enter Erebor whilst the dragon lives."

The Orc laughed. "You know nothing! Your world will burn!"

Legolas was getting frustrated with the Orc's vague words. "What are you talking about? Speak!"

And the Orc finally spoke. "Our time has come again. My master serves the One. Do you understand now, Elfling? Death is upon you! The flames of war are upon you." Then he laughed. Thranduil, who had had his back turned, stopped and flung a knife at the Orc without looking, severing the Orc's head. The body slumped to the floor, leaving Legolas with nothing but a head in his hand. He was disgusted, and dropped the head to the ground.

"Why did you do that?" he asked his father. "You promised to set him free."

"And I did." His father turned and approached Legolas and the dead Orc. "I freed his wretched head from his miserable shoulders." He stomped on the arm of the Orc and squashed it with his boot.

"There was more the Orc could tell us," Legolas protested.

"There was nothing more he could tell me." Thranduil began to leave the room, seemingly on a mission. Legolas got the feeling that he wasn't telling him something.

"What did he mean by the flames of war?" he followed his father.

"It means they intend to unleash a weapon so great it will destroy all before it." Legolas found that very unhelpful, but he knew his father wasn't going to say anymore about it. All he needed to know was that it was bad. His father began throwing commands at him. "I want the watch doubled at our borders, all roads, all rivers. Nothing moves but I hear of it. No one enters this kingdom, and no one leaves it."

"I will see it done." Legolas left the presence of his father and prepared to alert the other Guard members of the new orders.

Quickly he approached the gate and passed on the message to the Elves standing by it. "Close the gate! Keep it sealed by order of the King."

One of the guards, who had been looking outside, turned back to him as he went to leave. "What about Tauriel?"

Legolas stopped in his tracks. He knew Tauriel. He feared he knew what he would hear next and prayed he was wrong. "What about her?"

" She went into the forest armed with her bow and blade. She has not returned."

Legolas turned around and strode out the front gate, looking out at the forest in front of him, trying to find evidence of where she went. She must have left right after his father had dismissed her. She went on an impulse decision to hunt down the Orcs on her own...and find the Dwarf. He bristled and ignored that last thought. He would have to let his father know that Tauriel was gone. And then he would have to go after her himself and persuade her to come back.

Legolas immediately went back to his father, who was busy making preparations for lockdown of the kingdom.

"Ada."

He got the attention of his father, who seemed frustrated by the interruption. "What is it, Legolas?"

"Tauriel has left. She has gone into the forest and has not returned. I fear she intends to fight the Orcs on her own."

It was a moment before Thranduil said anything. But in these moments he festered with anger. "Please tell me you are lying," he said calmly.

"I'm afraid not."

A pause. "What is she thinking?" he exploded. "For almost her entire life I have cared for her, and this is how she repays me? By going against my orders and leaving the borders? How dare she!"

Legolas allowed his father a moment to calm down. "Ada, I can go after her. Talk some reason into her. I can convince her to come back."

Thranduil took a deep breath. "Perhaps. It would be wiser than sending out a force or leaving her to die." He looked at his son. "Go. Be quick. Be safe. And _do not _let your emotions get in the way of your reason."

"I won't, Ada."

He left his father, grabbed his bow and daggers, and set out into the forest to find Tauriel.

He figured that Tauriel would head up the river, following the Orcs, so that's where he started his path. His stride was silent, as not to alert any lingering creatures or Orcs of his presence. As he went along, he noticed signs that did not look to belong to that of an Orc. Elves did not typically leave behind signs of their presence, but Legolas knew Tauriel's tendencies. He saw overturned leaves on the forest floor, leaves still attached to the trees shaking from behind pushed aside, discolored bark from where she touched it. Yes, Tauriel was here. She used this path. Legolas followed it to the riverbank where he picked up the pace, the lack of trees making it easier to gain speed.

And after awhile, he saw a flash of red up ahead. A shade of red that did not come naturally in the forest. A shade that always gave her away. He was closing in on her. She was making her way down the riverbank to the mouth where it opened up to the lake, following the path of blood and destruction left by the Orcs. Legolas only had to keep her in his sight, and he would catch up to her. He knew so.

Silently, he followed her, his pace slightly faster than hers, and just as light. He got closer and closer. When she got to the mouth of the river, he was in the trees only yards behind her. He began to creep out of the trees, but that was when he made the mistake of stepping on a twig. Immediately on the offense, he drew his bow right as she heard the snap and drew hers. She visibly relaxed when she saw it was just him.

"I thought you were an Orc," she said to him.

"If I were an Orc, you would be dead," Legolas teased. They both lowered their bows, and Legolas approached Tauriel. "Tauriel, you cannot hunt thirty Orcs on your own."

"But I'm not on my own," she said knowingly.

"You knew I would come." They both smiled. Then Legolas remembered his purpose, and refocused himself. "The King is angry, Tauriel. For six hundred years my father has protected you. Favored you. You defied his orders. You betrayed his trust." He took a step closer. "Come back with me. He will forgive you."

Tauriel looked at him. "But I will not. If I go back, I will not forgive myself." She looked away from him and out at the lake. "The King has never let Orcs flee from our lands, yet he would let this Orc pack cross our borders and kill our prisoners."

Legolas couldn't believe she was worrying about such things. "It is not our fight."

Tauriel looked at him, appalled. "It is our fight. It will not end here. With every victory, this evil will grow. If your father has his way, we will do nothing. We will hide within our walls, live our lives away from the light and let darkness descend. Are we not part of this world? Tell me, Mellon, when did we let evil become stronger than us?"

He let that sink in. Yes, they were part of this world. His father only wanted to belong to his own part, but the world was more than that. And they had a responsibility to help protect it. He knew he wasn't supposed to let Tauriel or his feelings get in the way of what he'd set out to do…but Tauriel's words made so much sense. And at that moment, he knew he was going to go with her. Whatever she was planning to do, he would help her finish it.

"Alright, Tauriel," he said. "Where to next?"

She smiled, glad to see that she'd won him over. "Judging by the tracks and the blood, the Orcs were hot on the trail of the Dwarves. The Dwarves' trail stops soon, suggesting they found a way across the lake, but the Orcs' trail keeps going around toward Esgaroth."

"Are we to head for Esgaroth, then?"

"It seems that is where the path will take us. That seems to be where the Orcs went."

Legolas heard her unspoken words. She hoped it was where they'd find the Dwarves, as well. Legolas said nothing. "Come on, then. Let's go hunt some Orc."

And the two Elves set off, following the foul trail, hoping to come up with a result soon.


End file.
